Jump to content

2019–20 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2019–20 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Record20–12 (7–11 SEC)
Head coach
Associate head coachChris Crutchfield (1st season)
Assistant coaches
Home arenaBud Walton Arena
Seasons
2019–20 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 8 Kentucky 15 – 3   .833 25 – 6   .806
No. 20 Auburn 12 – 6   .667 25 – 6   .806
LSU 12 – 6   .667 21 – 10   .677
Mississippi State 11 – 7   .611 20 – 11   .645
Florida 11 – 7   .611 19 – 12   .613
South Carolina 10 – 8   .556 18 – 13   .581
Texas A&M 10 – 8   .556 16 – 14   .533
Tennessee 9 – 9   .500 17 – 14   .548
Alabama 8 – 10   .444 16 – 15   .516
Arkansas 7 – 11   .389 20 – 12   .625
Missouri 7 – 11   .389 15 – 16   .484
Ole Miss 6 – 12   .333 15 – 17   .469
Georgia 5 – 13   .278 16 – 16   .500
Vanderbilt 3 – 15   .167 11 – 21   .344
Note: The 2020 SEC tournament was canceled after the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rankings from AP poll

The 2019–20 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team represented the University of Arkansas during the 2019–20 season. The team was led by first-year head coach Eric Musselman, and played their home games at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas as a member of the Southeastern Conference. The Razorbacks finished with a record of 20–12 (7–11), with junior Mason Jones earning a share of the SEC Player of the Year award and being named a consensus First-Team All-SEC player.

Arkansas started the season strongly, going into conference play with an 11–1 record, including two road wins against Power Five teams, Georgia Tech and Indiana. The first quarter of conference play was promising for the Razorbacks, with the only setback coming on the road against LSU, 79–77. Heading into a highly anticipated home game with #10 Kentucky, the Hogs were 14–2, with a 3–1 conference record. Arkansas led with less than nine minutes left in the game when Kentucky head coach John Calipari was ejected, sparking a Kentucky run and victory. From there the season bottomed out, with the Hogs finishing the last fourteen games of the conference season with a record of 4–10 for a final regular season record of 19–12 (7–11), including a five-game losing streak without star guard Isaiah Joe that featured back-to-back overtime losses for the first time in school history, in addition to a one-point loss.[1] Heading into the last quarter of the conference season, Arkansas avenged earlier losses to Missouri and Tennessee, placing the Hogs back on the bubble, but fell on the road to thirteenth-place Georgia, effectively knocking the Razorbacks out of tournament contention. After splitting the last two games of the season at home against LSU and on the road against Texas A&M, the Hogs were on the outside looking in, most likely needing to win the SEC tournament to receive an NCAA tournament bid.[2]

After winning their first-round game against Vanderbilt on March 11, 2020, the Hogs were slated for a rematch against South Carolina in the second round, but the SEC announced on March 12, 2020, that the SEC Tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with an announcement following from the NCAA later that day that the whole tournament was cancelled, along with all other winter and spring championships, ending the Razorbacks' season.

The Razorbacks received some votes for the AP Poll throughout the non-conference season, but never earned a ranking, and stopped receiving votes by the end of January.[3]

Mason Jones was voted the SEC Player of the Year by the league media, sharing the honor with Reggie Perry, a Mississippi State player and former Arkansas commit, while the coaches' award went to Immanuel Quickley, of Kentucky. Jones was the third Razorback to win the award, along with Bobby Portis and Corliss Williamson. Jones had an outstanding season, being named SEC Player of the Week four times, one of three SEC players to ever do so and the first in over a decade. Jones led the SEC in scoring, becoming the first Razorback to claim the SEC scoring title, while also finishing ranked eighth in the country for points per game. Jones led the NCAA in both free throw attempts and makes, while also having nine thirty-point games, the most by an SEC player in two decades. Jones broke Sidney Moncrief's school record for free throws made in a season, in addition to being one of only three players in the previous thirty years to score forty points in a game multiple times in a season. Jones was named a consensus First-Team All-SEC player, the tenth time an Arkansas player has achieved that honor.[4] Jones was also named an Honorable Mention All-American by the Associated Press (AP).

Previous season

[edit]

On March 26, 2019, Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek fired former head coach Mike Anderson.[5] Following a 12-day search, Yurachek announced Musselman's hiring on April 7.[6]

Former guard Keyshawn Embery-Simpson had already announced following Anderson's firing that he would be leaving the school and transferring to Tulsa.[7]

Offseason

[edit]

Departures

[edit]
Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Daniel Gafford 10 F 6'11" 233 Sophomore El Dorado, Arkansas Declared for the NBA draft; selected 38th overall by the Chicago Bulls.
Keyshawn Embery-Simpson 11 G 6'3" 202 Freshman Midwest City, Oklahoma Transferred to Tulsa
Gabe Osabuohien 22 F 6'8" 221 Sophomore Toronto, Ontario Dismissed from team;[8] transferred to West Virginia
Justice Hill – G 5'11" 202 Freshman Little Rock, Arkansas Transferred to Salt Lake CC[9]

Incoming Transfers

[edit]
Name Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Jimmy Whitt Jr. G 6'3" 175 Graduate Student Columbia, MO Transferred from SMU after graduating. Will have one year of eligibility beginning immediately.
Jeantal Cylla F 6'7" 215 Graduate Student Lake Worth, FL Transferred from UNC Wilmington after graduating. Will have one year of eligibility beginning immediately.
JD Notae G 6'2" 185 Junior Covington, GA Transferred from Jacksonville. Under NCAA transfer rules, Notae will have to sit out the 2019–20 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.[10]
Connor Vanover F 7'3" 230 Sophomore Little Rock, AR Transferred from California. Under NCAA transfer rules, Vanover will have to sit out the 2019–20 season. Will have three years of remaining eligibility.
Abayomi Iyiola F 6'9" 210 Junior Atlanta, GA Transferred from Stetson. Under NCAA transfer rules, Iyiloa will have to sit out the 2019–20 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.

Jamario Bell would also join the team with one year of eligibility after his career with the Arkansas football team ended.

2019 recruiting class

[edit]
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Justice Hill
PG 		Little Rock, Arkansas LR Christian 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Nov 14, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2019 Arkansas Commits". Rivals.com.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2020 Recruiting class

[edit]
US college sports recruiting information for 2020 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Davonte Davis
SG 		Jacksonville, AR Jacksonville (AR) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Oct 12, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 82
Moses Moody
SG 		Little Rock, AR Montverde Academy (FL) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Nov 9, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 87
Jaylin Williams
PF 		Fort Smith, AR Northside (AR) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (100 kg) Nov 23, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 82
Khalen Robinson
PG 		Little Rock, AR Oak Hill Academy (VA) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Nov 28, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 83
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 11  247Sports: 8  ESPN: 5
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Preseason

[edit]

SEC media poll

[edit]

The SEC media poll was released on October 15, 2019.[11]

Media poll
Predicted finish Team
1 Kentucky
2 Florida
3 LSU
4 Auburn
5 Tennessee
6 Alabama
7 Mississippi State
8 Ole Miss
9 Georgia
10 South Carolina
11 Arkansas
12 Texas A&M
13 Missouri
14 Vanderbilt

Preseason All-SEC teams

[edit]

The Razorbacks had one player selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

Roster

[edit]
2019–20 Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 Jeantal Cylla 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) GS Lake Worth Community HS
UNC Wilmington 		Lake Worth, Florida
G 1 Isaiah Joe 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Northside HS Fort Smith, Arkansas
F 2 Adrio Bailey 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 217 lb (98 kg) Sr Lakeview HS Clarence, Louisiana
G 3 Desi Sills 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 196 lb (89 kg) So Jonesboro HS Jonesboro, Arkansas
G 5 Jalen Harris 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 166 lb (75 kg) RS Jr Word of God Christian Academy
New Mexico 		Wilson, North Carolina
G 11 JD Notae Current redshirt 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Newton HS
Jacksonville University 		Covington, Georgia
G 12 Ty Stevens (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Republic HS Republic, Missouri
F 13 Emeka Obukwelu 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 222 lb (101 kg) RS Jr Plano West Senior HS
UT-Tyler 		Plano, Texas
F 14 Jamario Bell 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Sr Junction City HS Junction City, Arkansas
G 15 Mason Jones 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Triple A Academy
Connors State College 		DeSoto, Texas
F 22 Abayomi Iyiola Current redshirt 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Greenforest-McCalep Christian Academy
Stetson 		Atlanta, Georgia
F 23 Connor Vanover Current redshirt 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) 230 lb (104 kg) So Findlay Prep
California 		Little Rock, Arkansas
F 24 Ethan Henderson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Parkview Arts & Science HS Little Rock, Arkansas
G 33 Jimmy Whitt Jr. 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) GS Hickman HS
SMU 		Columbia, Missouri
F 35 Reggie Chaney 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 222 lb (101 kg) So Findlay Prep Tulsa, Oklahoma
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: 2019-07-28

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 20, 2019*
3:00 pm 		Little Rock W 79–64 
 25 – Joe   9 – Whitt Jr.   3 – Tied  Bud Walton Arena (7,364)
Fayetteville, AR
October 25, 2019*
7:00 pm 		Southwestern Oklahoma State W 78–51 
 22 – Jones   9 – Chaney   5 – Sills  Bud Walton Arena (3,509)
Fayetteville, AR
Regular season
November 5, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+ 		Rice W 91–43  1–0
  32 – Jones   9 – Bailey   7 – Joe  Bud Walton Arena (17,274)
Fayetteville, AR
November 12, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+ 		North Texas W 66–43  2–0
  16 – 2 tied   6 – Jones   2 – 2 tied  Bud Walton Arena (12,001)
Fayetteville, AR
November 16, 2019*
4:00 pm, SECN+ 		Montana
College Hoops Roadshow 		W 64–46  3–0
  19 – Jones   11 – Bailey   4 – Jones  Bud Walton Arena (13,058)
Fayetteville, AR
November 19, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+ 		Texas Southern
College Hoops Roadshow 		W 82–51  4–0
  33 – Joe   10 – Whitt Jr.   5 – Harris  Bud Walton Arena (11,182)
Fayetteville, AR
November 22, 2019*
8:00 pm, SECN 		South Dakota
College Hoops Roadshow 		W 77–56  5–0
  24 – Whitt Jr.   7 – Tied   5 – Joe  Bud Walton Arena (12,581)
Fayetteville, AR
November 26, 2019*
6:00 pm, ACCN 		at Georgia Tech W 62–61 OT 6–0
  24 – Jones   9 – Joe   4 – Sills  Hank McCamish Pavilion (6,547)
Atlanta, GA
November 30, 2019*
4:00 pm, SECN+ 		Northern Kentucky
College Hoops Roadshow 		W 66–60  7–0
  24 – Whitt Jr.   11 – Chaney   5 – 2 tied  Bud Walton Arena (14,080)
Fayetteville, AR
December 3, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+ 		Austin Peay W 69–61  8–0
  17 – Whitt Jr.   6 – Joe   3 – Harris  Bud Walton Arena (11,995)
Fayetteville, AR
December 7, 2019*
6:30 pm, CBSSN 		at Western Kentucky L 79–86 OT 8–1
  20 – Sills   12 – Whitt Jr.   4 – Whitt Jr.  E. A. Diddle Arena (6,862)
Bowling Green, KY
December 14, 2019*
12:30 pm, ESPNU 		Tulsa W 98–79  9–1
  41 – Jones   7 – Chaney   4 – Tied  Bud Walton Arena (15,589)
Fayetteville, AR
December 21, 2019*
7:00 pm 		vs. Valparaiso W 72–68  10–1
  21 – Joe   9 – Jones   4 – 2 tied  Simmons Bank Arena (15,630)
North Little Rock, AR
December 29, 2019*
5:00 pm, BTN 		at Indiana W 71–64  11–1
  24 – Joe   8 – Bailey   6 – Jones  Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (14,892)
Bloomington, IN
January 4, 2020
6:00 pm, SECN 		Texas A&M W 69–59  12–1
(1–0) 		 17 – 2 tied   6 – Jones   5 – Harris  Bud Walton Arena (19,200)
Fayetteville, AR
January 8, 2020
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		at LSU L 77–79  12–2
(1–1) 		 24 – Jones   7 – Bailey   4 – Jones  Pete Maravich Assembly Center (8,662)
Baton Rouge, LA
January 11, 2020
5:00 pm, SECN 		at Ole Miss W 76–72  13–2
(2–1) 		 34 – Joe   6 – Jones   9 – Jones  The Pavilion at Ole Miss (8,233)
Oxford, MS
January 15, 2020
7:30 pm, SECN 		Vanderbilt W 75–55  14–2
(3–1) 		 30 – Whitt Jr.   8 – Whitt Jr.   8 – Jones  Bud Walton Arena (14,321)
Fayetteville, AR
January 18, 2020
3:00 pm, ESPN 		No. 10 Kentucky L 66–73  14–3
(3–2) 		 19 – Jones   6 – Jones   2 – Tied  Bud Walton Arena (19,200)
Fayetteville, AR
January 22, 2020
6:00 pm, SECN 		at Mississippi State L 70–77  14–4
(3–3) 		 20 – Tied   7 – Tied   4 – Jones  Humphrey Coliseum (6,337)
Starkville, MS
January 25, 2020*
3:00 pm, ESPN2 		TCU
Big 12/SEC Challenge 		W 78–67  15–4
  22 – Whitt Jr.   6 – Bailey   6 – Harris  Bud Walton Arena (19,200)
Fayetteville, AR
January 29, 2020
7:30 pm, SECN 		South Carolina L 77–79  15–5
(3–4) 		 34 – Jones   12 – Jones   4 – Jones  Bud Walton Arena (14,085)
Fayetteville, AR
February 1, 2020
5:00 pm, SECN 		at Alabama W 82–78  16–5
(4–4) 		 30 – Jones   11 – Chaney   2 – Tied  Coleman Coliseum (12,461)
Tuscaloosa, AL
February 4, 2020
6:00 pm, SECN 		No. 11 Auburn L 76–79 OT 16–6
(4–5) 		 40 – Jones   7 – Tied   5 – Jones  Bud Walton Arena (17,196)
Fayetteville, AR
February 8, 2020
2:30 pm, SECN 		at Missouri L 79–83 OT 16–7
(4–6) 		 17 – Tied   11 – Chaney   4 – Harris  Mizzou Arena (11,439)
Columbia, MO
February 11, 2020
6:00 pm, SECN 		at Tennessee L 61–82  16–8
(4–7) 		 19 – Whitt Jr.   6 – Chaney   2 – Tied  Thompson–Boling Arena (17,222)
Knoxville, TN
February 15, 2020
12:00 pm, SECN 		Mississippi State L 77–78  16–9
(4–8) 		 38 – Jones   6 – Tied   3 – Whitt Jr.  Bud Walton Arena (19,200)
Fayetteville, AR
February 18, 2020
6:00 pm, ESPNU 		at Florida L 59–73  16–10
(4–9) 		 21 – Jones   8 – Bailey   5 – Jones  O'Connell Center (9,023)
Gainesville, FL
February 22, 2020
12:00 pm, SECN 		Missouri W 78–68  17–10
(5–9) 		 21 – Joe   8 – Jones   4 – Jones  Bud Walton Arena (19,200)
Fayetteville, AR
February 26, 2020
7:30 pm, SECN 		Tennessee W 86–69  18–10
(6–9) 		 37 – Jones   9 – Henderson   4 – Whitt Jr.  Bud Walton Arena (14,101)
Fayetteville, AR
February 29, 2020
5:00 pm, SECN 		at Georgia L 89–99  18–11
(6–10) 		 26 – Tied   6 – Sills   6 – Whitt Jr.  Stegeman Coliseum (10,017)
Athens, GA
March 4, 2020
6:00 pm, SECN 		LSU W 99–90  19–11
(7–10) 		 36 – Jones   15 – Whitt Jr.   5 – Whitt Jr.  Bud Walton Arena (15,169)
Fayetteville, AR
March 7, 2020
3:30 pm, SECN 		at Texas A&M L 69–77  19–12
(7–11) 		 30 – Jones   5 – Tied   4 – Whitt Jr.  Reed Arena (8,443)
College Station, TX
SEC Tournament
March 11, 2020
8:30 pm, SECN 		(11) vs. (14) Vanderbilt
First round 		W 86–73  20–12
  22 – Jones   6 – Jones   6 – Jones  Bridgestone Arena 
Nashville, TN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Holt, Bob (March 9, 2020). "UA's NCAA goals begin with Vandy". wholehogsports.com. Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Inc. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  2. ^ Gasaway, John (March 12, 2020). "NCAA tournament Bubble Watch: Updated look at the wildest bubble in years". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  3. ^ "Arkansas 2020 AP Men's Basketball Rankings – College Poll Archive – Historical College Football and Basketball Polls and Rankings". collegepollarchive.com. College Poll Archive. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  4. ^ Cawood, Mike (March 10, 2020). "Jones Tabbed SEC Co-Player Of The Year; Consensus 1st Team". arkansasrazobacks.com. University of Arkansas. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
  5. ^ "Arkansas fires Mike Anderson after eight-year tenure". USA Today.
  6. ^ "Arkansas hires Eric Musselman away from Nevada as new Razorbacks men's basketball coach".
  7. ^ "TU lands Arkansas transfer Keyshawn Embery-Simpson".
  8. ^ "Arkansas dismisses forward Gabe Osabuohien". USA Today.
  9. ^ "Former Hog Justice Hill transfers to Utah junior college".
  10. ^ "JD Notae commits to transfer to Arkansas".
  11. ^ "UK picked to win 2020 SEC Men's Basketball Championship". SEC Sports. October 15, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2019–20_Arkansas_Razorbacks_men%27s_basketball_team&oldid=1237272441"